Gluten Free Menu Swap July 14

I posted our dinner last night today too.
We had pizza!
Fresh tomato, basil and mozzarella pizza.
You can find the recipe here.

And now… on to

Since our household is just made up of two adults (and a dog)… (so far!), we tend to live and cook on the whim of our taste buds. This is great – for now. But once in a while, it makes for late dinners and indecisiveness between us both. And it sometimes mean we toss out quite a sad amount of spoiled food because we shop without a plan. Since Natalie (Gluten Free Mommy) came out with this GF Menu Swap, I’ve been a lurker. But I’ve also been inspired.

So lately I’ve been writing these menus (privately), but I only write them for four days at a time. I guess I’m so accustomed to playing dinner by ear and time slips away from us that I can’t think of what to make for dinner five days out. I’m not sure how you are started organizing your menus (have you always done this?) but here’s what I did to start:

I made a list of all of the perishable food items I have on hand. (I call them my “Use ‘em or Lose ‘em List.)

I then listed out all of the staples I have in the freezer – mostly meats, etc.

Then I thought about all the recipes/flavors we’ve been wanting to try and…

…a list of entree ideas is born.

Once I have this list, I see what groceries I need and try to pare my list down from there.

Since my plan only includes 4 days, I also list a bunch of ideas for the fifth day and beyond. I never know if we are going to skip around on the meal chart or maybe the fifth day meal happens because I didn’t get the store (or the next plan written!) in time.

I’ve been trying to time my shopping trips for Thursday-Sunday because that is when the local Farmer’s Market is open. We’ve had the most delicious roast beets, fresh spinach, incredible blueberries, honey, tasty bee pollen, etc. And our Farmer’s Market has a couple local butchers, oyster farms, mushroom farm, fresh eggs, and salmon. Oh yes, it is so worth buying my staples there when we can.

On my “Meal Plan” chart (which is taped ever-so-ungracefully to the kitchen cabinet door), I also list a score of ideas for snacks or small meals if we chose to deviate or have an impromtu meal with friends. (If friends come over, I just pull one of the items off this list to accommodate more people.)

I am no expert here – but I will attempt to share one plan. I don’t guarantee that I can keep this up (especially when the school year kicks off). But for now, however, I will make valiant efforts to keep my 4 day plans going. Even if I don’t end up sharing them online.